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Damned Soul

Damned Soul is a bust by Gian Lorenzo Bernini, created in 1619. The work is preserved in the Palace of Spain in Rome, the seat of the Spanish embassy to the Holy See, also known as Palazzo Monaldeschi. It is noted for an exceptionally intense and violent expression, shown through wide eyes, raised brows, and a mouth opened in shock and terror. The sculpture is often contrasted with Bernini’s Blessed Soul, and together the two busts evoke the figures of the damned and the blessed. Recent studies have suggested, however, that the subject may not be a Christian soul at all, but a satyr. A bronze copy was made by Massimiliano Soldani-Benzi between 1705 and 1707 and is now in the Liechtenstein collection.

Damned Soul marble bust with a screaming face and furrowed brow
Damned Soul by Gian Lorenzo Bernini, shown as a marble bust with a face frozen in anguish.
December 2017 © · CC BY 3.0
Damned Soul by Gian Lorenzo Bernini, a white marble bust with a screaming anguished face and wild curly hair behind glass.
Damned Soul by Gian Lorenzo Bernini, shown as a white marble bust with an intensely anguished expression.
December 2017 © · CC BY 3.0
Damned Soul marble bust with a contorted face and open mouth in a scream, set on an ornate pedestal.
The Damned Soul bust by Gian Lorenzo Bernini, shown with its dramatically contorted expression on an ornate marble pedestal.
December 2017 © · CC BY 3.0
Damned Soul, a white marble bust with a contorted screaming face and curly hair.
Damned Soul by Gian Lorenzo Bernini, shown here in a close view of its dramatic expression.
December 2017 © · CC BY 3.0
Damned Soul marble bust shown from the back and right side, with tightly curled hair and the head bowed on a marble pedestal.
Damned Soul by Gian Lorenzo Bernini, shown from the back and right side with the head angled downward.
December 2017 © · CC BY 3.0

Identification

TitleDamned Soul
Original titleAnima dannata
Portuguese titleAlma danada
French titleÂme damnée
TypeMarble bust

Creator

ArtistGian Lorenzo Bernini

Historical context

Date1619

Materials

MaterialMarble

Location and ownership

Pendant workBlessed Soul
Nationality of artistItalian
Current locationPalazzo di Spagna, Rome (according to Rudolf Wittkower; possibly today Palazzo Monaldeschi)

Iconography and meaning

SubjectA young man, or possibly a satyr, looking downward in torment as if seeing and feeling the horrors of hell
PairingCompanion piece to Blessed Soul; together the two busts represent damned souls condemned to eternal punishment and blessed souls saved among the blessed
Facial expressionIntense expression of surprise mixed with terror, with wide-open eyes, strongly raised eyebrows, and an open mouth

Significance

Art-historical significanceRudolf Wittkower noted that such an incisive and violent expression had never before been attempted in art before Bernini

Discovery and provenance

Bronze copy artistMassimiliano Soldani-Benzi
Bronze copy datec. 1705–1707
Bronze copy materialBronze
Bronze copy locationLiechtenstein Collection